Five traffic spots you need to know when returning to Ohio University

If you're returning to Ohio University's Athens Campus soon as a student or faculty member coming back from a summer away, the surroundings might appear a little different than how you left them.

Crews with Facilities Management have been hard at work completing several construction and renovation projects, as well as attending to emergency repairs on some of the streets around campus. Though crews wrapped up many projects in time for the fall semester opening, there are continuing construction projects and road closures that could affect your travels around the Athens Campus.

Here are five traffic spots you need to know, and note, for when you return to Ohio University.

Wolfe Street – This road is permanently closed as part of the University's Master Housing Plan. Motorists can detour up University Terrace to Race Street, or follow South Green Drive along the back side of South Green, turn left on N. McKinley Avenue, turn right on E. Mulberry Street, turn right on Stewart Street and then left on East Union Street to connect with Jefferson Hill. Parking that was previously available in the Wolfe Street area is now available under the South Green garage.

University Terrace and South Green Drive – A three-way stop is now in place near the Ping Recreation Center and Clippinger Laboratory.

South Green Drive at Oxbow Trail - The site of the future multipurpose field house on South Green Drive will change rapidly over the fall as crews erect the steel structure serving as the main building. Construction traffic, including large trucks and equipment, will be moving in and out of the area daily.

Park Place - The east end of the north side of Park Place (near Alden Library) is closed while emergency repairs are performed. The south side (near the president's residence) is open to traffic.

Richland Avenue Bridge – Athens city crews completed work on the bridge that spans over Oxbow Trail in time for Move-In weekend activities, but the area may close at a future date for additional work. Watch for posted signs and detours.

Summer break produced changes, updates to Athens Campus

Below is a list of the updates completed this summer, as well as some links to past Compass articles providing you some background to better appreciate all the effort that went in to keeping OHIO beautiful.

Phase 1 of the University's Master Housing Plan
Perhaps the most notable change on the Athens Campus is the beginning of construction of four new residence halls, which is part of Phase 1 of the University's Master Housing Plan. The project meant relocating a 79-foot tall State Champion Virginia Pine tree. This video details how the move happened.

University Terrace
Up the hill along University Terrace, the new asphalt marks the spot where crews spent several weeks performing emergency repairs to a tunnel beneath the street outside Gordy Hall. The repairs forced a traffic detour, which was one of a few that made for some creative commutes around the Athens Campus, as you can see in this video. University Terrace is now open to traffic.
Bromley Hall, Stocker Center and Nelson Commons
Among the buildings that received treatments, seven floors of Bromley Hall were renovated to update office space and residence hall space. The second phase of the Nelson Commons Dining Hall project was completed in early August and a new access drive to the Nelson Commons loading dock was also completed in August. Renovations were performed on rooms 103 and 147 of Stocker Center and completed in time for fall opening.
On-going Efforts
These projects were by no means the end of the to-do list for crews. Several sites around campus are still receiving attention and you may observe changes taking place as work progresses. Phase 1 of the new Schoonover Center of Communication is expected to wrap up in the early weeks of fall semester and Pruitt Field is undergoing a turf replacement.

Although the busy summer meant some modifications to buildings and roads around the Athens Campus and projects continue as OHIO Builds for the Future, Ohio University remains the familiar, picturesque setting it has always been for faculty, staff and students as a new academic year awaits.